• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
101 Cooking For Two
  • Recipe Index
  • About
  • FAQs/Help
  • Shop
  • Best Recipes
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipe Index
  • About
  • FAQs/Help
  • Shop
  • Best Recipes
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipe Index
    • About
    • FAQs/Help
    • Shop
    • Best Recipes
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
  • ×
    🏠Home » Recipes » Bread Recipes

    English Muffin Bread

    Sep 6, 2023 by Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan · Last modified: Sep 11, 2023 · 10 Comments

    Jump to Recipe Table of Contents Print     Email Pin
    4.42 from 12 votes

    Easy, economical, and delicious, English Muffin Bread is loaded with nooks and crannies for melted butter and jam. No mixer, no kneading, a few pantry ingredients, and only 2 hours will make the perfect bread for toast and sandwiches.

    English muffin bread cut on a wooden board.
    Jump To:
    • 🥣Ingredients
    • 👨‍🍳How to Make English Muffin Bread
    • ✔️Tips
    • 🍞How to use English Muffin Bread
    • ❄️Storage
    • ❓FAQs
    • Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
    • 📖 Recipe
    Blue ribbon divider used for visual effect

    It is a very simple homemade bread, perfect for beginner breadmakers. Just follow the easy step-by-step photo instructions for a delicious no-kneed bread with a soft but coarse texture loaded with those nooks and crannies you want.

    If you love English muffins, this is the bread for you. Sometimes called English toasting bread or muffin bread, think of English muffin bread as muffins in a loaf, even with the traditional cornmeal-coated crust.

    Try other great bread recipes like Stand Mixer Bread—Basic White, Julia Child's French Bread, and Stand Mixer Peasant Bread.

    Based on Cook Country English Muffin Bread Recipe (membership required). I made it a one-loaf recipe and added options and details.

    🥣Ingredients

    • All-purpose flour
    • Instant dry yeast
    • Pantry ingredients—salt, sugar, baking soda
    • Milk or dry milk with water
    • Cornmeal—optional

    👨‍🍳How to Make English Muffin Bread

    1. Mix dry ingredients of flour, sugar, salt, sugar, and baking soda. Mix in yeast if not added to the liquid. Add dry milk if using water.
    2. Add warm milk or water with yeast and mix into the dry ingredients until no dry is left, but do not over-mix.
    3. Coat a bowl with PAM cooking spray, add the dough, and cover. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in size—about 30-60 minutes.
    4. Coat a loaf pan with butter and then dust with cornmeal. Add the dough and let the dough rinse in a warm place—for about 30 minutes.
    5. Bake until golden brown and an internal temp of 190°-200°—about 30-35 minutes.

    This is a summary of the steps and ingredients. See the recipe card or the step-by-step photo instructions below for complete instructions.

    ✔️Tips

    • This is a "light dough" with not a lot of structure. It needs to be contained by the loaf pan to bake well. The top will not "crown" and may "fall" at the end.
    • Let the loaf cool completely before cutting, or you may rip it apart. And when you do cut it, a sharp serrated blade knife is a good idea.
    • Hand mixing is preferred. Stand mixers and bread machines will tend to over-mix.
    • One package of yeast is 2 ½ teaspoons of bulk dry yeast.
    • Using bread flour instead of AP flour will give a slightly better structure from more gluten formation. Use what you have.
    • Instant Yeast is essentially the same as Fast-Rising, Rapid-Rise, Quick Rise, and Bread Machine Yeast. Active dry yeast can be used, but it works slower.
    • Coating the baking pan with cornmeal is traditional but not required. You can skip the cornmeal, but it will lose some taste and classic crunch.

    🍞How to use English Muffin Bread

    It's a perfect toasting bread for a toast and jam breakfast but also for French toast and will make terrific homemade sandwiches.

    ❄️Storage

    Like many homemade loaves of bread, there are no preservatives, so the shelf life is relatively short at only 2-3 days.

    You can freeze this bread tightly sealed for 2-3 months. I like to cut it into slices and separate it with parchment paper before freezing for convenience.

    ❓FAQs

    Are English muffins and English muffin bread English?

    No. English muffins and this bread are American creations and not English. The muffin bread is also known as English Muffin Toasting Bread.

    Although a British immigrant in New York City developed English Muffins.

    What is the best final internal temperature for bread?

    An internal temperature of 190° is a reliable endpoint for yeast bread. That is fine here, although the model recipe used 200°.

    Other signs of fully baked bread should also be present, like a nice brown color and a hollow sound when tapped.

    Can I use whole wheat flour?

    Whole wheat may be partley used. If you go over a 50% mixture, you may need a bit more liquid and should add some honey.

    Blue ribbon divider used for visual effect
    ↑Jump to Table of Contents

    This recipe is listed in these categories. See them for more similar recipes.

    Bread Recipes, Breakfast Recipes
    Blue ribbon divider used for visual effect

    Step-by-Step Photo Instructions

    flour with yeast and other bread ingredients.

    Things I always have on hand.

    bubbling of yeast in liquid.

    Optional proofing of the yeast—Mix one pack of instant yeast into 1 ½ cups of 105° - 110° water or milk. Let's sit while you do the dry mix. It should foam a little after a few minutes.

    mixing all the dry ingredients in a metal bowl.

    In a large mixing bowl, mix 2 ½ cups of AP or bread flour, ½ cup dried milk if not using milk, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon of baking soda, and 1 ½ teaspoon of sugar.

    adding wet ingredients into dry ingredients.

    Mix wet into dry and stir until there is no dry left.

    metal bowl covered with plastic wrap.

    Spray the bowl and some plastic wrap with a good spray of PAM on one side and cover the bowl with the plastic. The PAM will prevent sticking if the plastic touches the sticky dough. Place in a warm spot until double in size—30-60 minutes.

    coating a loaf plan with corn meal.

    Coat a loaf pan with butter and swirl about two tablespoons of cornmeal to coat. This is an  8X4 glass pan, but metal should be fine.

    covering the loaf pan and dough with plastic wrap.

    Preheat oven to 375°. Move the dough into the pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until even with the top of the pan — about 30 minutes.

    loaf of bread on a cooling rack.

    Remove plastic wrap. Bake until golden brown and an internal temp of 190°-200°—about 30-35 minutes. Allow to cool for about 60 minutes on a rack.

    ↑Jump to Table of Contents

    📖 Recipe

    English muffin bread cut on a wooden board

    English Muffin Bread

    From Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
    Easy, economical, and delicious, English Muffin Bread is loaded with nooks and crannies for melted butter and jam. No mixer, no kneading, a few pantry ingredients, and only 2 hours will make the perfect bread for toast and sandwiches.
    Tap to leave a Rating
    4.42 from 12 votes
    Print Email CollectionCollected
    Prep Time: 1 hour hour 40 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 2 hours hours 10 minutes minutes
    Servings #/Adjust if desired 12 slices

    Ingredients

    US Customary - Convert to Metric
    • 1 package instant yeast - approximately 2 ½ teaspoons
    • 1 ½ teaspoons sugar
    • 1 ½ cup milk or water
    • ½ cup dried milk - if using water
    • 2 ½ cups bread or AP flour
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • ½ teaspoon baking soda
    • butter - For loaf pan
    • cornmeal-optional - For loaf pan
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Optional proofing of the yeast—Mix one pack of instant yeast into 1 ½ cups of 105° - 110° water or milk. Let's sit while you do the dry mix. It should foam a little after a few minutes.
      bubbling of yeast in liquid
    • In a large mixing bowl, mix 2 ½ cups of AP or bread flour, ½ cup dried milk if not using milk, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon of baking soda, and 1 ½ teaspoon of sugar.
      mixing all the dry ingredients in a metal bowl
    • Mix wet into dry and stir until there is no dry left.
      adding wet ingredients into dry ingredients
    • Spray the bowl and some plastic wrap with a good spray of PAM on one side and cover the bowl with the plastic. The PAM will prevent sticking if the plastic touches the sticky dough. Place in a warm spot until double in size—30-60 minutes.
      metal bowl covered with plastic wrap
    • Coat a loaf pan with butter and swirl about two tablespoons of cornmeal to coat. This is an  8X4 glass pan, but metal should be fine.
      coating a loaf plan with corn meal
    • Preheat oven to 375°. Move the dough into the pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until even with the top of the pan — about 30 minutes.
      covering the loaf pan and dough with plastic wrap
    • Remove plastic wrap. Bake until golden brown and internal temp of 190°-200°—about 30-35 minutes.
      loaf of bread on a cooling rack
    • Allow to cool for about 60 minutes on a rack.
      English muffin bread sliced on wooden board
    See the step-by-step photos in the post. Some recipes have an option to display the photos here with a switch above these instructions but the photos DO NOT print.

    Your Own Private Notes

    Click here to save your own private notes only you will see. These will print and be saved for your next visit.
    Blue ribbon divider used for visual effect

    Recipe Notes

    Pro Tips

    1. You may use fresh milk or dried milk.
    2. Use either bread flour or all-purpose flour.
    3. Most yeasts will work other than old fashion “active dry yeast.” One pack of yeast is 2 ½ teaspoons if you have bulk. You can round that up to 1 tablespoon if you want.
    4. I suggest an 8 ½ by 4 ½ inch loaf pan. A 9 by 5 should be ok, but not bigger.
    5. I suggest using a thermometer to check for a final internal temperature of 190° to 200°. Also, when tapped, a nice brown color and a hollow sound should be present.
    6. The top of the loaf will probably be flat or even sunken a bit.
    7. Cool completely before cutting, or it will rip apart.
    8. Store tightly sealed at room temperature for 2-3 days. It may last 4 days, but maybe not. Do not refrigerate. You may freeze well sealed for 2-3 months.

    To adjust the recipe size:

    You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.

    Nutrition Estimate

    Calories : 124 kcal (6%)Carbohydrates : 22 g (7%)Protein : 5 g (10%)Fat : 2 g (3%)Saturated Fat : 1 g (5%)Cholesterol : 5 mg (2%)Sodium : 261 mg (11%)Potassium : 103 mg (3%)Fiber : 1 g (4%)Sugar : 3 g (3%)Vitamin A : 50 IU (1%)Vitamin C : 1 mg (1%)Calcium : 53 mg (5%)Iron : 1 mg (6%)
    Serving size is my estimate of a normal size unless stated otherwise. The number of servings per recipe is stated above. This is home cooking, and there are many variables. All nutritional information are estimates and may vary from your actual results. To taste ingredients such as salt will be my estimate of the average used.
    Course : Bread
    Cuisine : American

    © 101 Cooking for Two, LLC. All content and photographs are copyright protected by us or our vendors. While we appreciate your sharing our recipes, please realize copying, pasting, or duplicating full recipes to any social media, website, or electronic/printed media is strictly prohibited and a violation of our copyrights.

    Editors Note: Originally Published January 18, 2014. Update with expanded discussion and refreshed photos. A table of contents was also added to aid navigation.

    Dogs by the pond.

    More Bread Recipes

    • Pile of cornbread slices on a white plate.
      Old Fashioned Cornbread Recipe
    • the soft inside of a wheat dinner roll.
      Honey Wheat Dinner Rolls
    • apple bread on cutting board
      Apple Cinnamon Bread
    • loaf of banana nut bread on a cutting board
      Old Fashioned Banana Nut Bread

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      Leave a comment or ask a question. See comment policy for details. Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe Rating




      This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    1. Bllue

      August 17, 2022 at 9:47 pm

      Looking forward to trying this recipe. I love English Muffin bread, especially toasted.
      In Pro Tip #8 it says "You may freeze well sealed for 2-3 days." I'm hoping that should be months rather than days. This bread always disappears quickly but I was going to double the recipe and freeze 1 loaf!

      Reply
      • Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan

        August 17, 2022 at 9:51 pm

        Yep, months—fixed.

    2. Joy Beckerley

      January 31, 2021 at 11:06 am

      Can you use whole wheat flour in this recipe? Can you add dried fruit? Thanks. Joy

      Reply
      • Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan

        January 31, 2021 at 11:18 am

        Hi Joy,
        Welcome to the blog.
        I have never done it. It is ok to try some whole wheat but here are some generalities. Whole wheat needs more fluid, so the more whole flour added, the more liquid. Also, whole wheat has less glutin and a lot of the appeal of this recipe depends on the glutin creating the nooks and crannies.
        So you can probable get away with 25% whole wheat by just adding a bit more fluid. Also, switch the white flour to bread flour, which has more glutin, would be a good idea.
        50% will be a more dense bread but probably would be acceptable (I think). More the 50%- find a different recipe, it just won't be good.
        Adding dried fruit would be generally fine. Dust the fruit with some flour before adding it and it will help keep it suspended throughout the dough.
        Hope that helps. If you try it, please post your results.
        Dan

    3. bev

      January 27, 2021 at 1:47 pm

      Note oven temp. One place says 375, another says 350. May have to adjust time. It smells wonderful as taking from oven now.

      Reply
      • Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan

        January 27, 2021 at 2:07 pm

        Hi Bev,
        Welcome to the blog.
        As they say, see something say something. Thanks so much for the proofread. This one is embarrassing. Fixed. That is 375 everywhere.
        Dan

    4. Jan

      January 12, 2021 at 11:23 am

      Dr Dan
      First off I want to say I like your recipes very much. My husband and I are empty nesters. After cooking for 5 for alot of years I was finding it hard to cook for 2 again not with the help of your recipes I getting used to it. Do have a question about your English muffin bread recipe ; when you say dry milk do you mean powder milk?
      Thanks for your time
      May god bless you and keep you safe

      Reply
      • Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan

        January 12, 2021 at 11:33 am

        Hi Jan,

        Welcome to the blog and I'm glad you are finding it useful.

        Yes, I use the terms "dry milk" and "powdered milk" interchangeably. I have seen both on packages and it is all the same and meets USDA standards.

        I like to use powder (dry) milk since I can get the temperature I want for the liquid right much easier. I seem to never "hit the mark" when trying to get fresh milk to the temperature I want. I'm lazy.

        Also, as you know, in a smaller household, keeping fresh milk can lead to waste. I always have dry in the pantry and I frequently don't have fresh.

        So I published the recipe as dry milk but gave a fresh milk option.

        Dan

    5. Caroline

      April 14, 2015 at 12:09 pm

      Thanks! I was looking for a way to use up some dried milk. I'll definitely give this a try.

      Reply
    6. Deloris

      January 19, 2014 at 1:07 am

      I found another English Muffin Bread from onegoodthingbyjillee.com using only water, yeast, sugar, salt and flour. It makes wonderful toast too.

      Reply

    Primary Sidebar

    DrDan image Hi, I’m DrDan, and welcome to 101 Cooking for Two, the home of great everyday recipes with easy-to-follow step-by-step photo instructions. About DrDan

    Join the club
    SUBSCRIBE TODAY

    Chicken, Chicken, and More Chicken

    • pile of chicken legs on a white plate
      Baked Chicken Legs - Quick and Easy
    • Large plage of chicken thighs
      Oven Baked Chicken Thighs
    • cut baked chicken on white plate
      How to Bake Chicken Breasts in a Convection Oven
    • Grilled Chicken Breasts on a blue plate
      How to Grill Chicken Breasts on a Gas Grill
    • grilled chicken drumsticks on a grill
      Grilled Chicken Drumsticks—Quick and Easy
    • grilled chicken thigh with some char
      Grilled Chicken Thighs—Quick and Easy

    Steak, Steak, and More Steak

    • cut ribeye steak on a gray plate
      How to Grill a Ribeye Steak on the Grill
    • filtet mignon with potatoes on a white plate
      Pan Seared Oven Roasted Filet Mignon
    • Grilled filet mignon on a white plate
      How to Grill Filet Mignon
    • NY strip steak cut on an orange plate
      Pan Seared Oven Roasted Strip Steak
    • a strip steak with grill marks on a gray plate
      How to Grill Strip Steak on a Gas Grill
    • porterhouse steak with fries on blue plate
      Grilled T-bone Steak and Porterhouse Steak
    graphic of sites that I work with or have had recipes featured or referenced.
    SITES THAT I WORK WITH OR HAVE HAD RECIPES FEATURED OR REFERENCED.

    Footer

    ↑Jump to
    Table of Contents
    Join the club
    SUBSCRIBE TODAY

    About

    • About DrDan and the Blog
    • Comment Policy
    • Guest Posts, Partnering, and Business Questions

    Content

    • Food FAQ
    • Kitchen Reference Sheets
    • Recipes Featured in the Videos
    • Guide To Cooking for Two
    • Saved Recipes Collections

    dogs by the pond

    ↑ back to top ↑a

    Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Contact

    COPYRIGHT © 2010-2023 101 COOKING FOR TWO. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | BASED ON FOODIE PRO THEME

    • Email
    • Pinterest